Star Wars: The Jedi Path
Star Wars: The Jedi Path is an American science-fiction television series created by William Walton Granger and Timothy Zahn and produced by Granger. The show originally aired on the FOX network for six seasons, from January 7, 1998, to May 29, 2003. Upon completion of the prequel trilogy in 1993, Granger conceived a show that would utilize the Jedi motif in a modern day setting to keep costs down. 20th Century Fox had previous success with the animated Droids TV show, but were reluctant to fund a live-action show. Fears that production costs would be inflated with such a special-effects laden show, or cost cutting measures would limit the visuals, FOX executives turned down the suggestion for a live-action series. Instead they suggested to Granger to focus on the planned sequel trilogy. Suggesting that an earth-bound setting using the fan favorite lightsabers and Jedi characters could work, Granger pushed the idea to the executives. Following the re-release of the original Star Wars trilogy in 1997, FOX executives agreed to green-light a pilot for the controversial series. The show debuted on FOX network on January 7, 1998, earning the channel's highest ratings thus far. The series ended with the sixth and final season. The show has received numerous awards, including two Satellite Awards, six Golden Globe Award, a Writers Guild of America Award, a Young Artist Award, and two Emmy Awards. Production Conception Knowing that a live-action series based on the Star Wars films could never achieve the same look and style on a television budget, William Walton Granger essentially opted to create a Star Wars show without using the established universe. Returning again to earlier drafts for names and concepts, Granger created a storyline where the Jedi and the Sith and their ancient war could be relocated to modern day earth. and his sister Joanna Coffin spar. Notice the blades are without visual effects added.]] Granger created a 35 page TV bible titled "Star Wars: Path of the Jedi" which included early concepts such as earth being the world which would become Coruscant. Mark Hamill returning as a lead where an older Luke Skywalker travels through a wormhole and becomes stranded on Earth. As well as the origins of droids via a multi-national corporation known as BioCyber Corp that would solidify the timeline and the show's position specifically within the universe of Star Wars. Not pleased with most of his outline, Granger turned to novelist Timothy Zahn for help. The two radically altered the series and its origins. The idea of Luke Skywalker being a lead was dropped. (The character would turn up in several guest appearances though) They deliberately made the (renamed Jedi Path) connection to the Star Wars universe vague, focusing on the Jedi and Sith characters and the idea of a secret society of Sith who ruled the world. The Jedi were non-existent as a entity until their formation in the pilot. Granger and Zahn conceived of a 6 year story arc that would reveal the series timeline connection to Star Wars in the final episode. Development History Casting Filming Music Cast and Characters Main Characters *Sam Witwer as Deacon "Deak Starkiller" Sternemörder *Fairuza Balk as Catherine Jane "C.J." Thorpe *Tyrese Gibson as Mace Williams *Paul Walker as Charles Dathaine/Darth Abyssus *Chase Masterson as Victoria Cavanaugh/Darth Varius *Grace Park as Verona "Cloudrider" Yoon Recurring Characters *Grey DeLisle as Holocron Guide (Shade) *Stana Katic as Miranda Tate/Darth Thorain *Kevin Conroy as Wayne Villard/Darth Sane *Carla Gugino as Kayla Green/Darth Zahar *B.D. Wong as Qing Zhao Ming/Darth Wyn *Melissa Gilbert as Sara London/Darth Surm *Patrick Stewart as Darth Vindus *Djimon Hounsou as Darth Manus *Ruben Santiago-Hudson as Gabriel Simms *Doug Jones as The Voice of AI Mk.5 *Frank Welker as Peter Gibbs *Penny Johnson Jerald as Senator Kelly Robertson *Doug Jones as RK-90 *Alexander Siddig as Abdul-Ahad (Servant of the One) *Casey Biggs as George Sternemörder *Miles Fisher as Raymond Sternemörder *Ellen Page as Alice Stewart *Ron Perlman as The Dai Noga *Doug Jones as The Lettow *Katharine Isabelle as Angel One *Emily Perkins as The Princess of Ondos *Jeremy Sisto as Michael McManus *John Ventimiglia as Sgt. Tony Mazzini *David Thewlis as Nathan Sparks Special Guest Appearances * Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker * Anthony Daniels as C-3PO/Charles Kenneth Baker * Frank Oz as Yoda * Ian McDiarmid as Darth Imperious * Samuel L. Jackson as Mace Windu * Dwayne Johnson as Darth Bane Episodes The complete series was released on DVD and Blu-ray on November 26, 2010, in a collectable box shaped like one of the Jedi Archives found and used by Decon Starkiller to reform the Jedi Order. The set contains various features, including a two-hour documentary, a copy of "The Jedi Path" book, Season 1 (1998) Season 2 (1999) Season 3 (2000) Season 4 (2001) Season 5 (2002) Season 6 (2003) Format Star Wars: The Jedi Path utilized a serialized story structure, similar to that of her contempory shows The Amazing Spider-Man, Lost, Prison Break'' and 24. From the very start Granger and Zahn had announced that the entire series had been pre-written and the scripts were under lock and key. Despite the fact that the ratings were strong by its sixth year, Granger chose to end the series as planned. Reception Critical response The first season has been moderately well received among critics; it holds a score of 74 out of 100 on Metacritic. British magazine Empire ranked it #35 in their list of the "50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time" and said "The Jedi Path was an action-packed weekly adventure that outclassed just about every other show in the genre." The New York edition of Time Out listed the show in their top 50 TV shows of the decade 2000 – 2009. The Jedi Path also appeared in UGO.com's list of Top 50 TV Shows of All Time. U.S. television ratings Seasonal rankings (based on average total viewers per episode) of The Jedi Path on FOX Note: Each U.S. network television season starts in late September and ends in late May, which coincides with the completion of May sweeps. Awards and nominations References Sources that refer to Breaking Bad being considered a black comedy include: * * * * Rothman, Lily, Acclaimed Original Series, Breaking Bad, for a Second Season|publisher=AMC|date=May 7, 2008|accessdate=November 17, 2010}} s Final Premiere Date, Confirms Launch of 'Spin-Off' |work= TVLine|last=Ausiello|first=Michael|date=April 17, 2013|accessdate=April 17, 2013}} Sources that refer to Breaking Bad being praised as one of the greatest television shows of all time include: * * * * * * * }} External links Category:Star Wars Category:1998 American television series debuts Category:2003 American television series endings Category:FOX (TV channel) network shows Category:American science-fiction television series Category:Best Drama Series Golden Globe winners Category:Emmy Award winning programs Category:English-language television programming Category:Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series Screen Actors Guild Award winners Category:Peabody Award winning television programs Category:Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series winners Category:Serial drama television series Category:Suspense television series Category:BAFTA winners (television series)